Gamifying Phishing Simulations: Boosting Engagement with Leaderboards and Rewards

Phishing attacks continue to pose a significant threat to organizations. In fact, 85% of businesses and 86% of charities that experienced a cyber breach or attack in the last 12 months identified phishing as the most prevalent and disruptive type of attack (Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025).

Despite the widespread use of phishing simulations, many training programs fail to engage employees, leading to low retention and limited impact. One innovative solution is gamifying phishing simulations—integrating leaderboards, rewards, and interactive challenges to make training more engaging and effective.

By incorporating game-like elements, organizations can motivate employees to actively participate, recognize threats more effectively, and develop long-lasting cybersecurity habits.

In this blog, we will explore how gamification enhances phishing training, the key elements of effective gamified simulations, and how the Keepnet Phishing Simulator leverages these strategies to build a resilient and security-aware workforce.

The Need for Gamification in Phishing Simulations

Traditional phishing simulations often fail to capture employees' attention because they are typically repetitive, static, and lack interactivity. Employees may view these exercises as routine tasks rather than valuable learning opportunities, leading to low engagement and poor knowledge retention. As a result, many organizations struggle to build a security-aware culture, despite investing in training.

Gamification offers a fresh approach by transforming phishing simulations into interactive, enjoyable experiences. By incorporating leaderboards, rewards, and real-time feedback, employees become more motivated to participate and improve their skills. This not only makes training more effective but also helps build lasting cybersecurity habits.

By making learning fun and competitive, gamification fosters a proactive approach to recognizing and reporting phishing attempts, significantly enhancing overall security awareness.

To learn more about the benefits of gamification in security training, check out the Keepnet article: The Power of Gamification in Security Awareness Training.

To learn more about the benefits of gamification in security training, check out the Keepnet article: The Power of Gamification in Security Awareness Training.

Key Elements of Effective Gamified Phishing Simulations

To make phishing simulations truly engaging and impactful, it’s essential to use gamification elements that capture employees' attention and promote active learning. By incorporating features like leaderboards, rewards, and realistic scenarios, organizations can transform dull training sessions into interactive and motivating experiences.

Let's explore the key components that make gamified phishing simulations successful.

Leaderboards: Fostering Friendly Competition

Leaderboards display real-time rankings, allowing employees to see how they compare with their peers. This element fosters healthy competition, motivating participants to improve their performance and stay engaged.

When employees see their names move up the leaderboard, it creates a sense of accomplishment and recognition. This positive reinforcement encourages consistent participation and helps build a learning-focused community. To keep the experience inclusive, leaderboards should highlight progress, not just top performance, ensuring everyone stays motivated.

By incorporating leaderboards into phishing simulations, organizations can create a dynamic and engaging training environment that inspires employees to continuously enhance their skills.

Rewards and Badges: Reinforcing Positive Behavior

Rewards and badges are effective incentives that acknowledge employees' achievements in identifying phishing threats. Offering points, digital badges, and certificates not only boosts morale but also reinforces good security practices.

Earning badges like "Phishing Pro" or "Quick Responder" creates a sense of pride and accomplishment, motivating employees to stay proactive in training. These tangible recognitions encourage consistent participation and help build a security-focused mindset.

By integrating rewards and badges into phishing simulations, organizations can create a motivating learning environment where positive behaviors are consistently celebrated.

Realistic and Interactive Scenarios: Making Training Relevant

Phishing simulations that mimic real attacks make training more engaging and practical. Instead of generic exercises, employees encounter role-based, story-driven scenarios tailored to their daily tasks—like a fake HR email for administrative staff or a suspicious invoice for finance teams.

By facing context-specific threats related to their roles, employees learn to spot small phishing clues more effectively. This hands-on, interactive approach not only sharpens detection skills but also builds confidence to handle actual incidents.

To learn how to run personalized phishing simulations from a technical perspective, check out the Keepnet article: How to Run Phishing Simulations: A Step-by-Step Guide.

Immediate Feedback: Nudging Employees Towards Better Security Habits

Providing immediate feedback during phishing simulations helps employees develop better threat recognition skills. One effective approach is using nudges—subtle prompts that gently guide employees toward safer choices without blaming them.

For example, if an employee clicks on a suspicious link, a nudge might say, "Remember to check the sender's email for small spelling errors." This supportive tone reinforces the correct behavior without causing embarrassment, making it easier for employees to learn from mistakes.

By incorporating nudges into phishing simulations, organizations promote a positive learning culture where employees feel encouraged to improve their security habits.

To learn how to customize nudges for different roles, check out the Keepnet article: Customizing Nudges for Specific Roles in Security Behavior and Culture Programs.

Personalized Learning Paths: Tailoring to Individual Needs

Not all employees have the same level of cybersecurity awareness, so training should be personalized to match their skills. Personalized learning paths adapt the difficulty of phishing simulations based on individual performance, keeping training relevant and engaging for everyone.

For example, beginners might start with basic phishing detection, while more experienced users face advanced social engineering scenarios. This approach ensures that employees remain challenged without feeling overwhelmed or bored.

By offering tailored training, organizations can boost engagement and retention, helping employees build practical skills that match their roles and experience levels.

To learn how to customize phishing simulations for different departments, check out the Keepnet guide on Customizing Phishing Simulations for Different Departments.

How Gamification Improves Phishing Awareness

Gamification enhances phishing awareness by making training more engaging and memorable. Instead of passively consuming information, employees actively participate in challenges, quizzes, and interactive scenarios that reflect common phishing risks.

This hands-on approach encourages employees to think critically and apply their knowledge in practical situations. By integrating friendly competition and rewards, gamification taps into employees’ natural motivation to perform well, making them more likely to retain what they learn.

As employees repeatedly practice recognizing phishing threats through game-based exercises, they build lasting skills that help them respond effectively to phishing attempts.

Best Practices for Implementing Gamified Phishing Simulations

To maximize the effectiveness of gamified phishing simulations, it’s important to go beyond just adding game elements. Successful implementation requires a strategic approach that keeps employees engaged while building practical skills.

Here are some proven best practices to make your gamified training both effective and enjoyable:

• Set Clear Objectives: Define specific goals, such as reducing phishing click rates or increasing threat reporting accuracy. Make sure employees understand the purpose behind the training.
• Choose the Right Gamification Elements: Integrate features like leaderboards, badges, and interactive scenarios to keep employees motivated and encourage active participation.
• Personalize Training: Use phishing simulation tool that can be adapted to different roles and experience levels. Use adaptive difficulty to ensure everyone remains challenged without feeling overwhelmed.
• Provide Instant Feedback: Use nudges and tips to help employees learn from mistakes in a supportive way, promoting continuous improvement.
• Track and Measure Progress: Monitor key metrics like participation rates and phishing detection accuracy. Use this data to adjust and optimize training.
• Keep Content Fresh: Regularly update phishing simulation campaigns with new phishing tactics and scenarios to ensure the training stays relevant and engaging.

By following these best practices, you can create gamified phishing simulations that build stronger cybersecurity awareness while keeping employees motivated.

Keepnet Success Story: How Keepnet Helped Wisebits Strengthen Phishing Awareness

Wisebits, a video hosting company, faced challenges with manual cybersecurity tools that were inefficient and time-consuming. To improve phishing awareness, they chose Keepnet for its user-friendly interface and quick campaign setups.

Keepnet introduced gamification elements like leaderboards, rewards, and interactive scenarios, making training more engaging and practical. Despite initial resistance, consistent support helped employees embrace the training. As phishing tests became more complex, phishing test failure rates dropped from 25% to just 3-4%.

By incorporating gamified elements, Wisebits improved phishing resistance and built a security-aware culture. They now recommend Keepnet for its ease of use and effective training.

Read the full story

How Keepnet Phishing Simulator Uses Gamification to Boost Engagement

The Keepnet Phishing Simulator combines gamification and AI-powered simulations to make security awareness training more engaging and effective. By using adaptive phishing campaigns it helps organizations reduce social engineering risks while keeping employees actively involved.

The simulator leverages AI to create realistic phishing scenarios that mirror the latest attack techniques, ensuring that training remains relevant and challenging. Employees actively participate in dynamic, game-like exercises that build resilience against evolving threats.

The simulator leverages AI to create realistic phishing scenarios that mirror the latest attack techniques, ensuring that training remains relevant and challenging. Employees actively participate in dynamic, game-like exercises that build resilience against evolving threats.

With over 6000+ phishing templates and 80 merge tags, the simulator allows for customized and targeted campaigns, making simulations more relatable and practical. Additionally, support for 120+ languages ensures that employees can train in their native language, increasing engagement and comprehension.

By integrating AI-driven adaptation, gamification, and customization, the Keepnet Phishing Simulator helps employees recognize and respond to phishing threats while fostering a proactive security mindset.

Trends in Gamified Phishing Training

Gamified phishing training is constantly evolving to keep pace with emerging cyber threats and changing workplace dynamics. Here are some key trends shaping the future of this approach:

• AI-Powered Personalization: Advanced simulations now use AI to tailor training based on individual performance, making exercises more relevant and challenging for each employee.
• Immersive Experiences with VR/AR: Virtual and augmented reality are being used to create realistic, hands-on scenarios, helping employees practice phishing detection in a more engaging environment.
• Integration with Real-Time Threat Data: Training platforms are now leveraging live threat intelligence to simulate the latest phishing tactics, keeping employees prepared for current risks.
• Social Learning and Collaboration: Incorporating team-based challenges and leaderboards fosters a sense of community and friendly competition, boosting motivation and retention.
• Continuous Micro-Training: Short, frequent training sessions keep employees consistently engaged and reinforce good security habits without overwhelming their schedules.

By embracing these trends, organizations can make phishing awareness training more dynamic, relevant, and effective.

Check out Keepnet’s Free Phishing Simulation Test to assess your organization's readiness and strengthen your security posture.